Undone
by Emina333
Summary: The war with Aizen had ended, but it didn't do so without some serious losses. Knowing that nothing could ever be anywhere remotely close to how they had been before, Kisuke sent the only person who could set things right back in time. Now, Ichigo has to find a way to make things right without completely screwing up the timeline while hiding the fact that he is from the future.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hey guys.( Full Summary) This is a time travel fic. The war with Aizen had ended, but it didn't do so without some serious losses. Knowing that nothing could ever be anywhere remotely close to how they had been before, Kisuke sent the only person who could set things right back in time. Now, Ichigo Kurosaki has to find a way to make things right without completely screwing up the timeline while simultaneously hiding the fact that he is from the future! **

**Disclaimer: I'm just a girl with her cat and a laptop. Do you honestly thing I would even become anywhere close to owning Bleach? Yeah... didn't think so.**

**\- ****Hello = Zangetsu**

**-**_**Hello= Ichigo's Hollow- in this story Shirosaki ( shiro for short)**_

_-'Thoughts'_

* * *

" He's changed, Kisuke." Kisuke Urahara locked eyes with the normally eccentric Isshin Kurosaki. It was odd to see him so serious. Something was gravely wrong.

"Oh. How so?" He asked sipping his tea, eyes never leaving the other's.

"He's started to distance himself from us. I haven't seen him hanging around any of his friends either. Even Yuzu and Karin have noticed something is going on." Isshin's eyes became softer when he mentioned the girl's names. He felt for them. They were worried about their brother. That much he could tell. Still he had no clue what was going on with his son.

"And you came to me because you thought I would know what was happening with him." Urahara leaned back, surveying the familiar comfort of the shop, " You know, Isshin, I haven't seen the boy since he was an infant. What's got you so concerned? You think he had a run-in with a hollow or a shinigami?"

Isshin set down his tea cup on to the low, round table and sighed.

"Yeah, I started to think that could be it, but I haven't noticed him hanging around anyone lately. He just hides himself locked up in his room. "

"I see. Well that is peculiar." Urahara tilted his head slightly so his ever-present bucket hat shaded his eyes.

"Another thing, Kisuke, He's been having nightmares again." Urahara's eyes peaked interest with this new information.

"Like the ones he had after Misaki's death?" The look in Isshin's eyes hardened, and he visibly stiffened at the mention of his deceased wife. He and Ichigo never spoke about her death. That was something he always regretted, but he knew Ichigo would have just brushed him off if he tried to confront him about it, so he let it go.

"No. These are worse. Much worse."

"hmmm" Urahara flicked open a white fan to shield his deductive gaze. He needed to find out what was happening to this boy. he swore that he would to all that he could to help out his old friend. Besides, this could be a very interesting case.

"That's all I had to say about this matter. Keep a watch of him when I'm unable too, will ya?" Isshin stood to go, brushing off non-existent dirt off the remains of his captains robe that he wore over his shoulder.

"Sure thing." Urahara's stele eyes never left his old friend's gaze, "You know, you should come visit me some more. I'm happy to be of assistance any way I can." He smirked beneath his fan

"Just keep me updated, Kisuke." Isshin said before he turned and shunpoed out of the shop.

Kisuke smirked. '_Some things were finally starting to get interesting around here_.' He thought to himself_. 'Now, where did Yoruichi run off to again?' _

* * *

_**So, Kingy, How long are you going to sit around sulking like that?**_

**I Agree with him, Ichigo. You need to stop sulking. Your family has already started to notice your change in behavior since you came back.**

Ichigo stared up at the familiar, yet unfamiliar ceiling of his bedroom. He had no clue how long it had been since he had last slept through the night. He was sure he had bags under his eyes, but he was too exhausted to get up and look in the mirror. He hadn't eaten in a few days either, even though tasting Yuzu's cooking again was amazing. He didn't want to worry his family, but Zangetsu was right. His family was noticing something different in him. He would be lying to himself if he said that he didn't see the pain in his sister's eyes every time he couldn't finish a meal, or notice how his father stopped attacking him every time they were in the same room together. Karin had even stopped asking him to play soccer with him. And as much as it hurt him to see his family this way, when couldn't bring himself to get up. He was defeating the entire purpose of coming back.

_' How could I have been so stupid?' _ Ichigo thought to himself as he turned on his side to face the wall.

_**Aww come on, Kingy, You're not THAT stupid! I mean you're dumber than a sack of rocks, but still! How 'bout you and me go take down some weakling hollows? That'll cheer ya up! **_He could practically see Shiro grinning in his mind.

**Ichigo. I have told you time and time again that if you look back you'll age. If you hesitate, you will die. So why are you hesitating now? **

Ichigo huffed. He didn't feel like talking to his inner spirits right now. Sure Zangetsu had a point, and even Shiro was trying to cheer him up. He felt so pathetic. He decided he just need a long nap to calm his mind- if he could avoid having another nightmare that is.

Instead of finding himself drift off to sleep he found himself inside his inner world , standing on the sideways skyscrapers. He almost didn't recognize it. It was pouring down rain. He hadn't see this much water in his inner world since he had learned the final Getsuga Tensho.

"What am I doing here? I just want to be left alone!"

" **You can't get rid of us, Ichigo. We are part of you. To kill us would be to kill a part of yourself**."

"Why am I here?" He asked again. His voice sounded so broken. If the two spirits which resided in him hadn't known him any better, they would've thought that a tone like that could never have come out of Ichigo.

"_**because you won't get off your ass and do what you came here to do**_!"

" What's the point? It's not like I could actually help. The future will still be the same! My friends that I have now ill never be the same!"

Shiro laughed, " _**The point?! The point was to save all those pathetic shinigami and humans who couldn't protect them selves. I thought you were supposed to be King here. Well, I won't have my King be less than his own horse! One who Protects!? You've got to kidding me! You're no better than the dirt on my shoe.!**_

Zangetsu simply stood off the side and watched silently as the inverted figure taunted his counterpart.

'_** I can't believe you! You think you can just sit around and do nothing while that bastard Aizen is out there planning to destroy the world?! Do you want that future to come true again? Do you want him to kill all your friends again? Do you want him to Kill You're fi-**_

"Shut Up!" Ichigo's sudden scream broke through Shiro's taunts. " Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! SHUT UP! None of that is going to happen again! I won't let it happen again! No one has to die. I won't let them die!" Ichigo's eyes started to glow blue with his new found resolve. His jaw set and his eyes were focused. " I'm going to kill that bastard Aizen if it's the lat thing I do." He spat out his name with a strong disgust as if they were poison on his tongue.

" Sorry it took me so long to snap put of it guys." He looked up and the rain had stopped.

" I'm going to go apologize to my family for being so distant lately." Ichigo started to disappear from his Inner world

"**Ichigo**" He heard the strong voice break though to him, " **It's nice to have you back."**

Ichigo smiled in agreement . _' yeah'_ He thought, ' _It's good to be back'_

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I would like to thank all of you for your reviews! The First chapter was more a prologue than anything to see if I should keep writing. The chapters now will be considerably longer than the first. **

_**Gulliman-**_ My first reviewer! Thank you for reading. I also want you to know that I will try my best to update regularly . I also hate it when time travel fics end suddenly and the author disappears. That's one of the reasons I'm writing this fic. This is finals week for me, so I should be a little more freed up after exams.

**Tahaku, Mugetsudude, and my nameless reader**\- I'm not revealing anything on pairs just yet because I want this fic to be more plot and adventure/ action rather than romance. The pairing that will come out is my personal liking, but I do read all. I promise that the pairing won't be a major part of the story. It will most likely appear in conversations rather than actions.

* I hate it when people write Ichigo as a sappy lover* -_-

**\- ****Hello = Zangetsu**

**-**_**Hello= Ichigo's Hollow- in this story Shirosaki ( shiro for short)**_

_-'Thoughts'_

* * *

" Ichi-nii!" Ichigo's eyes opened to the sound of his sister's voice calling from downstairs, " It's time for dinner!" He smiled. After the nice talk/ fight with Shiro and Zangetsu he felt much better . He even felt like he could finish his meal today.

"Alright! I'll be right down, Yuzu!"

"Well you better be! Yuzu made your favorite- curry just for you."

He had to suppress his laughter when he heard Yuzu try to cover up that fact by her self-conscious blabber. Ichigo never understood how they were twins. They were complete opposites of each other. Karin was the brash, feisty spit-fire who was well-rounded in sports and was useless in anything having to do with homecare, and Yuzu was the sweet, innocent, charming little girl who had more fun cleaning and cooking for her family than playing any sport. She was, in a way, a perfect representation of their mother- a kind, warm-hearted person who's smiles could light up any person's day. Ichigo was nothing less than proud of his younger sisters.

As he walked downstairs to the dinner table, Ichigo remembered his sisters dying in his arms. He could hear their agonizing screams plauging his mind, causing years of torturous memories to stir in his brain. To his left he saw Yuzu screaming out of confusion. She didn't know what was going on. They should've told her about the family. Dammit they should have told her! At least then maybe she'd be able to prepare or understand why this was all happening. '_understand huh? I don't even understand it myself'_ But Ichigo told himself not to think of these things. They hadn't happened yet. He'd make sure it never did again. He couldn't stand seeing Karin covered in blood, clutching on to what little life she had left. Ichigo cursed under his breath as he avoided a flying kick from his eccentric father.

" Damnit you old man! Who goes around kicking their sons in the face?" Isshin was lying on the ground a few feet away having overshot his goal. Quickly he stood up and bounded over to the enormous poster of his wife on the wall.

"Oh Masaki! Our son! I have nothing left to teach him!" His hysterics went unnoticed by the rest of the family as Ichigo took a seat at the table across from Karin.

"So, how was school today, Karin?"

"It was good. I kicked some major ass today in my soccer tournament. You shoulda seen it, Ichigo." He smiled

"That's great, Karin! I'm sure you sent the other team crying home to their mommies." She balked and glanced at Yuzu who was sharing a confused look. Was Ichigo really being normal again?

"Yeah, I bet I did." Karin responded dryly still confused with her brother's sudden change in character from the past week.

He tilted his head towards Yuzu, " What about you? Anything exciting happen to you today, Yuzu?"

She smiled sweetly at him, " Nothing really special. Oh! But I did catch sight of the poster for the fireworks festival. It's going to be in a few weeks." She turned her head to her crazed father who was still dotting over the poster of his beloved, " Do you think we can go, Dad?"

Isshin stopped his antics and ran over to join his children at the dinner table, " Of course Yuzu!" He grinned and threw a thumbs up, "Fireworks have always been a family specialty!"

Karin sighed, "It's not a specialty , Dad. It's just a tradition."

"What?! How can my own daughter say something like that! The art of fireworks has been passed down through the family line for generations!"

"Please, Dad. Cut the crap would ya? Geeze, you're such a lunatic."

"How dare you call your father a lunatic! Masaki, Karin's finally entering her pre-teen years! What a sad but glorious day!"

Yuzu chuckled, " It seems like you're right, Karin. Dad really is a lunatic!"

"Not you too! Oh my precious, little Yuzu!" Isshin ran over and enveloped his daughter in a suffocating embrace.

"Oh come on you two. Stop picking on Dad. He's right ya know. Fireworks are a family specialty." Ichigo smiled as he thought about his cousins. He couldn't wait to see Kukaku and Ganju in this timeline. Granted she'd probably make him scrub the floors and cook them dinner when she found out who he was. But that was Kukaku. And Ganju would probably yell at him and try to force him onto a wild boar for transportation- to which he would respond that shunpo was fine. He smiled. Yeah he missed those two. they were family after all.

"Don't side with him! What are you talking about anyways?' Karin yelped when she heard Ichigo side with her father. That in itself was a miracle.

"You'll find out sooner or later, Karin." he said with a knowing smirk on his face.

"Wait, Ichigo!" He stood up to leave the room thanking Yuzu for the delicious meal. " What are you taking about? Tell me. Ichigo!"

"Maybe later, sis" He waved over his shoulder as he disappeared to his room. Yuzu was too caught up in doing the dishes to notice, and Karin was too busy sulking trying to figure out what her jerk- brother meant to notice that Isshin had suddenly become very serious. They were oblivious to his glance over at a figure in a particularly shadowy corner of the room, and they were to obvious to notice that figure nodded his head before leaving the room abnormally fast.

* * *

_**Ya know he noticed, right?**_

_'Yeah I could sense him in the corner all throughout dinner'_

_**Then why'd ya pull a risky stunt like that?**_

_'I want to see what will happen. I can't hide this from them forever, ya know'_

_**Ya could try**_

_'That defeats the purpose of coming back in the first place_.'

_**Hey, King**_

_'hmmmm'_

_**You're really something else**_

_'hn'_

Ichigo felt Shiro retreat back into his inner world. During the war they had really gotten closer to each other, and now they were like brothers. He could sense his father leave the house. It didn't surprise him. He had purposely let a small hint drop to increase their suspicions even more. He had known that Urahara and the old man had been having secret meetings about him since he came back. That didn't surprise him. What did was that Urahara didn't try to approach him. He thought the bastard would try to knock him unconscious at least, yet nothing happened.

He sat up from his bed and walked over to the window, opening it slightly. Looking out, he remembered when he first found out his dad was a soul reaper.

He didn't know why it was such a shock to him at the time. It was an obvious explanation as to why he had so much reiatsu himself. Ichigo had been so oblivious to sensing back then that he hadn't noticed his father's noticeable reiatsu signature. He didn't even notice the more obvious lack of ageing in his dad either. He mentally slapped himself when he realized how stupid he was for not realizing it sooner. Oh well, he couldn't change the past. Well, he could change the future.

Ichigo decided that he need to meet with Urahara and his father soon and explain somethings before something happened. He didn't know when Rukia would show up for the first time- he assumed soon- and he didn't need anymore confusion to add to his new found life.

So it was decided he was to see his father and Urahara. Better now than later. Taking a soul pill which he had stolen from Urahara's place without him knowing, he swallowed it, commanding the mod soul to stay out of trouble. Then, he opened the window even further than before and jumped.

He knew they way to Urahara's place like the back of his hand. They had spent so much time together there. During the war with Aizen, they became more like friends than a mentor and his student. They were drinking buddies after his father's and Yoruichi's deaths too, and Urahara was the closest thing he had to family that was left. Truthfully, he couldn't wait to see that stupid, striped bucket hat and the knowing smirk in his friend's eyes again. He had lost both in the war.

As Ichigo was speeding through Karakura town in a blur, he began to feel nostalgic. He couldn't believe that the city would cease to be nothing but a pile of rubble in a few years. He remembered all the good times he and his friends had spent there. He remembered when they got their powers. He remembered beating up gangs with Chad, and fighting the Menos Grande with Uryu. But he remembered all the bad times as well. Like when Aizen came down after not being seen or heard from in nearly two years and stole Ichigo out of his home at night, or how Renji acquired an injury so severe protecting Karin and Yuzu that not even Orihime's powers could save him in the end.

Landing infront of Urahar's, Ichigo shook the thoughts out of his head. He could still change it. He could protect everyone. None of this had to happen again, and he sure as hell wasn't going to let it. Taking a deep breath in an attempt to calm himself down, Ichigo slid open the door to the shop taking in the smell of old boxes and bamboo.

* * *

" How would he know something like that?"

"I don't know, but it is a little concerning."

"A little? My own son just dropped that he knew more about my family! He probably knows about me!" Isshin slammed his fist on the small table in front of him causing tea to fly out of the cups.

"Calm down, Isshin. He had to find out sometime you know." Isshin sighed.

"I know, but he's just a kid. He doesn't need to get caught up in our world yet." Urahara raised his brow.

"He was caught up in it from the moment he was born. Look, with Masaki's and your reistu this was bound to happened sooner than later." Isshin shook his head.

"Yeah, I know. I just wish it had been later rather than sooner."

"Anyways, you better tell him everything soon or-" Both Shinigami looked up when they felt someone approaching. Urahara tightened his grip around his cane which was lying next to him on the floor, and Isshin reached for his zanpakto. They watched, ready to strike at any moment, as the door to the tea room slowly opened. Standing in place of the door was Ichigo Kurosaki.

"Hey Dad, Kisuke. " He nodded at both of them in acknowledgement, " Mind if I take a seat?" He didn't wait for an answer before planting himself across from his father and friend.

"So, I guess your wondering what I'm doing here, and as a shinigami no less."

Urahara was the first to speak up, Isshin was still in too much of a state of shock to say anything.

"That's exactly what we were wondering. Would you care to explain for us? If your father doesn't die of shock that its."

"Certainly. I assume you all know of a man named Soske Aizen, don't you?" At the mention of his name, Isshin snapped out of it and became very serious. He had always felt something was off about that man, and when the hollification and exile of the visoreds occurred, he was one of the only people to believe Urahara, and now that his son was speaking his name, he knew he had to listen.

"That man plays a dangerous game, Ichigo. Don't get involved." Urahara's eye's glazed over in anger. Now he was involving a fifteen year old, boy?

"Sorry. too late. I already have. Well it's complicated." Kisuke's eyes narrowed in suspicion.

"Complicated how?"

"I guess I have to start from the beginning don't I? Well here goes nothing." He looked directly into their eyes. ' This might take a while, so you might want to pay attention. I don't want to have to explain this more than once."

And with that said, Ichigo began telling his story, " I guess I have to clarify that I'm from the future first. Well, not exactly. My future self came to me and merged his powers and memories with mine, so now I have the memories of events that haven't occurred yet. That all happened a few days ago. When I entered my first year of high school, I was visited by a shinigami who game me her powers so that I could protect the family from a hollow. I ended up having to save her life multiple times from Aizen and the Soul Society because somebody- Kisuke- placed a thing called the Hogyoku inside of her. Anyways after training and learning bankai in three days, I managed to save her, but it was too late. Aizen had taken two other captains with him in an attempt to take over the world. He wasn't to kill the spirit kind. Throughout the years Aizen would come and go. No one was strong enough to face him though- especially not after he fused with the Hogyoku. I was just a high schooler, but I was the only one who could stand a chance against Aizen. But the Winter War lasted ten years, and Aizen just kept getting stronger. A lot of people died..." Ichigo had to keep himself in check, " A ton of people died. Kisuke and I were some of the only people left, so He sent me back to save everyone before it was too late. Back to before Aizen fused with the Hogyoku."

"So how old are you now?" Isshin spoke up. He knew that his child hadn't been the same in a long while, and it made sense now.

"I'm 25, but I'm in a fifteen year old's body."

"But you're still just a kid, How could Aizen get you involved in something like this?"

"You know Dad, we're all told at some point in time that we can no longer play the children's game, we just don't… don't know when that's going to be. Some of us are told at fifteen, some of us are told at forty, but we're all told. I was just needed at a younger age than most. It's not anyone else's fault for getting involved other than mine."

He looked over at Kisuke who seemed abnormally shocked for the normally composed man.

"How could I send you back?"

"Look, it was for the better Kisuke. I don't mind. I also wanted this." Ichigo reassured

But Kisuke wasn't buying it. He had done some horrible things in the past, but he never had the gall to send a kid back to save him. It was so selfish, and even if Ichigo said that he wanted this too, he could tell how much the kid was hurting inside. he could never forgive himself for that.

**TO BE CONTINUED**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N:**** Wow! 17 follows, 12 favs, and 11 reviews already?! You guys are awesome! I love reading what you have to say, and if you're lucky you'll get an honorable mention at the end of the fic for being a dedicated reviewer/ follower. We have a lot to tackle in this chapter, so let's get going!**

_**Hylla-**_** I've really come to Love Byakuya's character. He's just so interesting. Yes he will be in this fic later on, and I might do a spin off fic so that some characters get more screen time. I'm still deciding.**

_**Wyyrd-**_** Yes! There is going to be a flashback chapter. There are going to be small flashbacks( well flash-forwards lol) here and there and when a new character is introduced. Like when Rukia comes there will be one, when Ichigo goes to the Soul Society etc... but there will be one big chapter that is solely a flashback.**

**\- ****Hello = Zangetsu**

**-**_**Hello= Ichigo's Hollow- in this story Shirosaki ( shiro for short)**_

_-'Thoughts'_

* * *

" I'm stationing you down in the world of the living for a few months" The young shinigami looked up in surprise.

"Why?"

"There's an unusual reiatsu signature, and the spiritual activity down there has increased lately. You'll be stationed in Japan- a place called Karakura Town." She furrowed her brows in confusion. She was sure had she heard that name before.

"Karakura Town?" She asked.

" Yes that's right." His soft voice was calming, and it offered reassurance towards his subordinate. Still, she was on edge.

"But why me? I'm not even a seated officer yet."

"You're a very skilled shinigami. I believe that you'll do just fine. If you need any help, you can always call for back up."

"Yes, of course Captain. When do I leave?"

"You leave tomorrow. Be ready." She nodded

" Yes Sir."

"Oh, and Rukia, be careful." The pale-faced Captain of squad thirteen smiled at her.

"I will, Taicho. don't worry."

Rukia gave a curt bow before leaving the captains office. She hadn't been in there for several years- since Kaien died. Since he had passed away, Captain Ukitake hadn't seen much of her. She distanced herself from him- it was too painful. It reminded her too much of the late Vice Captain.

Rukia kept telling herself that she needed to send her regards to the Shiba family, but ti was too hard. There was no telling how they'd react. She was sure they'd hate her for what she had done. It was all her fault he was gone anyway. She admired Kaien more than anyone else. He didn't care that she was a noble. He didn't care that she wasn't the best. What he did care about was his subordinates. He practically ran the squad all by himself, and the first day he told her to " Call 'em captain" She knew she picked the right squad to be in.

It was expected of Rukia to join squad one or six to follow the noble ways, but she couldn't see herself being in one of those squads. She wasn't cut out to be one of the duty- upholding, honorable shinigami. She didn't really have a specialty. She wasn't strong enough for eleventh, and she certainly wasn't going to be a test subject to the twelfth. She considered going into the fourth because she was good at kido, but her brother said that her skills would be wasted there.

That left the eight, seventh, fifth, tenth, ninth, and second squads. While Kyoraku, the captain of squad eight, was a good man- he was also a perverted one. Rukia didn't want to be seen that way. She guessed she could've gone into the seventh, but something about having a captain whose face you never saw creeped her out. There was always the fifth, but just like the seventh, the captain creeped her out only the fifth division captain gave her bad vibes, not just the oddity that he never showed his face which Aizen did.

The remaining three quads weren't bad squads. Truthfully, Rukia would've been fine going into any of them. The tenth squad was an orderly squad when the captain was present, and a party squad when the lieutenant took over. She wouldn't haven't minded that at all, and the thought of having someone smaller than you running the squad was somewhat comforting. At least no one would make fun of her height. Still, she felt like she'd just be looked over in that squad. The ninth squad was in charge of the News Magazine of the Serretei, and for some reason they wouldn't let Rukia illustrate for them, so she scratched that option off her list. The only squad left was the second which she decided against immediately. There was no way that she would have been a member of the stealth force because her Hakuda wasn't all that great either.

The thirteenth squad was perfect for her, and although she was uneasy going into it at first, she never once regretted it even all these years later. Sure she was an unseated officer, but that just meant that she needed more practice. Maybe the trip to the world of the living would be good for Rukia. It would be nice to get away for a change and prove herself.

She frowned when she saw a young girl getting her doll taken by two young boys. She was going to go help her out, but another boy came in and yelled at them. He wasn't much older than they were, but he seemed to have their respect, and they stopped. It reminded her of herself saving Renji and their friends from store keepers who they stole food from. It wasn't an easy lifestyle, and these children had it so much better than she did. Rukia always felt blessed since she entered the Academy, but she never felt noticed. So when she was asked to be adopted into a family, and a noble one no less- she couldn't refuse. She was excited and nervous at the same time. Mostly she was just confused. Even after living as a Kuchiki for around 40 years now, she just felt unseen in the family's eyes. Rukia was treated like a noble, but she would never truly fit in with them. She wasn't born and bred to be one of them. She was born and bred for fighting. Growing uo in the 78th district of the Rukongai, you had to be. This chance to prove herself on a mission could be what she needs to obtain a seated officer position. Even if that position ended up being a 20th seat, it would all be worth it.

Rukia didn't even notice that she was back at the Kuchiki manor until she ran into the gate. Recovering, she opened it to find two rows of servants bowing at her.

"Welcome Home, Rukia-dono." They said this without looking her in the eyes, keeping a low bow.

"I told you guys, it's just Rukia. I was adopted into- not born into- the family." They said nothing in response to her, keeping their low bow. Rukia hated being addressed as a noble. Sure, it had it's perks, but it was mostly irritating.

A lone servant approached her, " How are you today, milady?"

Rukia smiled up at her, " I'm fine, Miako. Actually, I have some news for Nii-sama. Would you be so kind to tell me where he is?" Miako was one of the only servants that wasn't scared to approach her for fear they would do something to upset her. Miako had straight, brown hair that ended half way down her back, and small framed glasses which rested on a slightly turned up nose. He voice was clear, but shaky. Like she couldn't ever be sure she was saying the correct thing. She was also Rukia's personal servant, so they had a different relationship. She was there for advice, though she didn't particularly give great advice, and she was a shoulder for Rukia in her times of need. Rukia didn't have many friends in the Seretei. In fact, she had none at all.

Renji had stopped talking to her since he started climbing the ranks. Sometimes when they saw each other he'd try to talk to her, but it wasn't the same anymore. She was an unseated officer of the thirteen court guard squads, and He was the lieutenant to her Brother, captain of the sixth squad. They were too far apart in rank. They had nothing in common any more. All of her other friends from childhood had passed on, and any friend she had from the academy had turned on her when she was adopted. Not even the nobles wanted to hang out with her because she was the bastard child of a clan.

"Certianly. Byakuya-dono is in his quarters working on his calligraphy. Would you like me to alert him of your arrival?" Rukia shook her head

"No. That's fine. I'll just go and tell him myself."

"Of course, milady. Would you like to eat in your room or in the dining room tonight?"

"Will Nii-sama be joining me?" Miako's smile faded as she shook her head to the side once in response.

"I do not think so, milady. The Lord of the house said that he had some business to attend to and for us not to bother him with trivial matters such as eating in a certain place." Rukia raised a finger to her mouth in thought.

"I see. Well then I guess I'll just eat in my room tonight."

"Certainly. We will have your meal waiting for you." Miako bowed at the waist before walking briskly back to the manor to fetch Rukia's meal. No matter how many times Rukia told them not to be so formal, they would never listen.

Rukia headed toward the house pausing only to look at the sakura tree which had recently blossomed. It was late for blossoms, so she found it unusual. As Rukia walked through the halls, she couldn't help but to notice that it seemed quieter. Not that it wasn't always quiet, because it was, something about tonight just seemed off.

Rukia knocked on her brother's door lightly, " Nii-sama? I have some news for you."

She head a slight scratching sound of paper and brush stopping before a gentle 'clank' of the brush being set down.

"Come in, Rukia." The gentle voice of her adoptive brother drifted lazily through the thin door, signaling her allowance to open it.

"What did you need to tell me?" She looked into her brother's gray stare trying to decipher the mask.

" I'm being stationed down in the world of the living for a few months to check out a strange reiatsu signature and to help control the recently growing hollow activity."

"I see." She stared at him waiting for more of a reply before speaking up once more.

"That was all I had to say brother."

"When are you leaving?"

"Tomorrow." He seemed to consider the new information that had been handed to him before deciding against doing anything about it.

"Well then. You are dismissed." Rukia nodded and left the room feeling more stressed than when she had gone into the room. But she would never here the silent 'be careful' from Byakuya, and she would miss his gaze drifting out the window to the sakura tree. And she would never find out why the house was so quiet that night, and she would miss the stillness that the night held because she was too busy packing and preparing for the trip ahead. So, of course she's miss her brother's silent words which fell dead on his lips when he looked at a picture of his late wife, asking for Rukia's protection and safety. And Rukia was too excited for what tomorrow held to realize what tomorrow really was- the anniversary of the death of her older sister, and her brother's late wife.

* * *

After telling Kisuke and his dad everything, Ichigo decided to head home. They could tell whomever they pleased as long as they didn't print out fliers and hand them out all over town. They all decided that they'd let the shinigami who is in charge of Karakura Town take care of the hollows for now so that Ichigo didn't play his cards too early. Not that it really mattered. If Aizen came after him now- which he wouldn't- Aizen wouldn't stand a chance. However, if Aizen bonded with the hogyoku again, then they'd have a problem.

So far, Ichigo had already made it clear with Kisuke that he was not to put the hogyoku inside of Rukia. It made it way too easy for Aizen to take it and make his own. The only thing they had to find out was how to get rid of the hogyoku. Kisuke assured him that they'd find a way to seal it off if they couldn't destroy it, but he needed time. Time was not something that Ichigo had. He had come back in time, yes, but he was meaning to go back a couple hundred years to stop Aizen before he even started. Something went wrong and he ended up only ten years in the past. And Ichigo had seen what could happen in ten years. He lived through it by some miracle, but it was not something that he wished to experience again anytime soon.

His thought's were interrupted by a voice, _**Hey, King. feels like our favorite little midget is in town. Won't be long before she pays you a visit.**_

Ichigo tried to ignore the demented voice. He didn't want to think about Rukia. He wasn't sure how he'd get her to stay. As much as he hated it he had to get her arrested by the Soul Society again. He had to make Aizen think that she had the hogyoku inside of her so that Ichigo could break into the Soul Society again. Even though he was getting used to the ever occurring since of de ja vu, it still freaked him out that he had to do this all again. He wanted to make sure that his friends never got their powers again, but then again he needed them last time. They wouldn't be the same people without their powers, so he decided to leave that alone and just let their powers develop like they head last time- without him interfering. Now that the issues of his friends' powers was settled, he had to figure out how to approach the Visoreds and get them on his side again. He assumed he could just tell them he was going to war with Aizen and that they could come along, but Shinji and the others were very spontaneous people, and they probably wouldn't be too happy about not being the only ones to beat the shit out of Aizen. They were selfish in that aspect, and Ichigo couldn't really blame them. After what he did to them, Ichigo would've felt the same way. But this was his fight. He didn't want too many people involved.

Counting on his fingers he included the Soul Society, Urahara, His dad, The Visored, His human friends, Yoruichi, and potentially his family. It was the same group from the war with Aizen, but they'd be ready this time. Ichigo would make sure of it. Tomorrow was the first day of school after all, which meant everything would be kicking into gear pretty soon. Reaching over, Ichigo turned off the lamp on his bed side table and laid on his bed looking up at the ceiling. He was still wearing his clothing from that day. He was too lazy to change out of them, besides he had a lot on his mind. Lackadaisically, he crossed his arms behind his head and sighed. It was going to be another long night. Deciding he should probably get some rest, he closed his eyes.

ROOOOAAAAARRRRR!

Ichigo sat up. The hollow was close. Too close.

"It's near" He heard a voice speaking from his window.

"Yeah I know it's near. I heard it." He rolled his eyes.

"That's odd. I have some reiatsu signature interfering with my-"

Ichigo looked over to his window when he realized that it wasn't Shiro or Zangetsu who had spoken to him. There, standing on his desk was Rukia Kuchiki. Ichigo had to keep himself in check in order to not break out into a smile and suffocate her in a bone-crushing hug. Maybe he hadn't yet met her in this life, but that was Rukia. He'd know her face anywhere. Taking a deep breath to calm himself he raised his foot like he had done before and kicked her in the ass, " What are you? Some kind of burglar. Well if you are one, you're not very good at it!"

Rukia looked up at the screaming teenager in shock, " Wait a minute. You mean you can see me?"

Ichigo scoffed, " Well considering that was my foot that was just in you're ass, I'd say yes. I can see you."

_'It's her. She's really here!'_

_**Calm down, king. Save house now, freak out later.**_

* * *

**TO BE CONTINUED**

*** Honorable Mentions***

Kit Kinya L.O.A.F member

-FUN FACT-

Miako means flames in Swahili ^_^


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** **Hey Guys! I'm so sorry that it's been such a long time. I've had a lot going on in my life that I've had to deal with, and hopefully now I'll be more freed up to continue writing.**

**\- Hello = Zangetsu**

**_-Hello= Ichigo's Hollow- in this story Shirosaki ( shiro for short)_**

_-'Thoughts'_

* * *

It took a few seconds before Rukia came to terms with what had just happened. After all, it wasn't very often that she got mistaken for a burglar and kicked by random person- much less a human boy to be exact. The fact that he could let alone see her shocked her. In order for that to be the case, this strange human had to have an incredible reiatsu signature.

"Well? Are you going to tell me what you're doing in my house?" Ichigo continued to look down at his good friend. He wanted more than anything to call her by her name and tell her everything that was going on. She was his best friend after all. But that was just it—she _was_ his best friend. She had absolutely no idea who he was. She had no remembrance of any of the incredible times they had had together._ 'How could she'_ he thought,_ 'How could someone have memories of something that didn't happen yet?'_

"Well if you got your foot off of me I might just tell you what I'm doing here. It's not like you'd understand anyways." Rukia scoffed up at hm. She couldn't believe what was going on. She was currently talking to a pathetic human boy who could SEE her!

"Hey. What's that supposed to mean? You calling me stupid or somthin'?!" Ichigo was so tempted to pick his little fights with her again. It just wouldn't be the same without their constant bickering with each other.

Rukia's eyes widened in shock of his stupidity. She hadn't meant to call him stupid. It was just going to be freaking hard to explain the soul society and her world to a human, nonetheless, she had to rebuttal. "What? That's not what I said at all! What's wrong with you? Were you dropped on your head as a baby?"

Ichigo crossed his arms in defiance. "Well it sure sounds like you're calling me stupid to me! I mean what else does "Were you dropped on your head as a baby?" sound like?"

"I said that's not what I meant!" She screamed waving both of her hands in the air comically.

"Eh, whatever. Anyway, wanna tell me why you're here again exactly?" Ichigo said trying to pry the information he knew all too well from her again. It's not like he actually lived this scene in this lifetime anyways.

Rukia sighed. "I guess I could give you the shortened version." She didn't know where to start. No matter what she said it would sound ridiculous to him. How does someone explain that they go around fighting giant invisible monsters while saving spirits and guiding them to the after-life. An afterlife that was nothing like the heaven described for the humans once they died. Sometimes, well, a majority of the time souls didn't meet up with departed family members. They lived in ramshackle houses, and sometimes stole basic necessities to survive. If one was lucky, they'd develop enough reiatsu to become a Shinigami. Even though, the chance was slim.

"Good. I'm not one for stories, so make it quick" It needed to be too. Ichigo could sense the Hallow approaching from across the city. He was lucky that it was so late out. He didn't sense anyone around it, so they could risk taking up some time.

"I guess I should start with telling you my name, huh?" Rukia said sitting cross legged on the floor of Ichigo's room.

"Might be a good place to start" He agreed while takin a seat across from her.

"My name is Rukia Kuchiki. I'm from the Soul Society. I'm a Shinigami sent here to investigate some mysterious reishi signatures here in the world of the living." She thought she sounded crazy. Who the hell would believe this bullshit. Seriously. It was like it came out of one of those Manga that she had heard about.

"In that case, I'm Ichigo Kurosaki. I'm from right here in Karakura Town. I'm a high school student who was born here because I was. What the hell is the Soul Society?" Ichigo decided to go along with it. He knew that he'd have to savor the moments that he had with his friends since he got the second chance; nevertheless, he kept a careful observance on the hollow that was approaching. He knew that Kisuke would be there soon if he didn't get a move on, but then again Kisuke must have noticed that Rukia was now with him. That changed things. He had to figure out a way to get Rukia to lose her powers again. He didn't want to. He didn't like the thought of puttering her in that weakened state, still it was something he had to do.

"The Soul Society is I guess what you would call heaven. It's where souls who have not committed any serious crimes or sins go after they pass on from this life." She paused, carefully watching the expression on his face to see if it was safe to continue.

He nodded, "That makes sense I guess. Now what the hell are Shinigami. "

Rukia Balked. She couldn't even believe herself what she was saying. It was all too ridiculous. Just absolutely ridiculous, "Well, a Shinigami is someone who tries to guide these souls to the afterlife as well as banish hollows, or evil spirits."

Ichigo nodded. "Uh-huh. So you expect me to believe that you are from another world, and you have come down here to earth to fight some evil monster thingy called a hollow?"

Rukia paused, "Well yeah I guess. That's exactly it!" That was easier than she expected it to be.

"Uh-huh. Well that's just a load of bullshit. Ya know, you would've been better off telling me that you were a burglar instead of this pathetic lie. I mean honestly. I'm not THAT stupid." Ichigo had to hide his smile. It was fun messing with her again. Maybe it would be easier than he thought hiding his knowledge of the future from her. His dad knew, and Kisuke knew- that was two people too many. They had to know of course, it wasn't as if he could keep it a secret from Kisuke anyway, and his dad deserved to know.

"But it's true!" Rukia protested, "Do you want me to draw it out for you? I am a pretty incredible artist, don't ya know." She smirked as she started to take out her drawing pad from the folds of her shihakushō

Ichigo waved his hands quickly once he saw the drawing pads edges, "Nah. That's okay. I think I got it. So if you're so adamant that what you're saying is true, then I guess I might as well go along with it. So what are we going to do about that Hollow- that's what it's called right?- that's approaching towards m house?" He would've loved to see her poorly drawn bunny explanation, but they were really running out of time. The growing pressure around his body was tingling from the approaching hollow, and he knew that it would be there soon. He also noticed that Kisuke had finally decided to come into play, and that would be interesting to see how Urahara would fake the Hōgyoku this time.

**_Hey Kingy. Mr. Hollow is coming closer. Ya might wanna get around to it soon._**

_'Yeah no joke. You don't think I noticed him?_'

_**Well apparently Rukia over here hasn't. What's with her anyway? It's not like it's a weak signature. Sure it's not all that strong, but**_

_'Cut her some slack, Shiro. It's not like she's been advanced enough to-'_

ROOOOOAAAARRRR

Ichigo's head turned to the window in shock, "That was close"

"What are you talking about? I knew it. You're just delusional aren't you." She huffed, "And now I've wasted all this time!"

Ichigo's eyes widened in mock shock at her. He knew that her power level wouldn't be up to par with her future self, but that was very close. Even an amateur Shinigami fresh out of the academy would have been able to sense that. "What are you? Deaf? Don't you hear that? That has to be a hollow of some kind!"

Rukia was slightly offended at his antics. What could a human sense that she couldn't? "You're crazy. I would've sensed if it one was as close as you say it is. I mean come on." She crossed her arms and turned her heard away from him.

ROOOOOOOAAAAAAAARRRRR!

"Now I hear it." She was startled. That was close. How did she not hear it before? There must have been something messing with her senses.

Ichigo sighed in relief. His cover was still in check, "Good. Now why don't you go attack it before it hurts my family?!"

"Okay, okay. Just stay here. I can't have you getting hurt either." Rukia stood up to go, readying herself to jump through the window she had come in through.

"What? No! If it wants my family, then I'm going too." Ichigo stood up beside her.

"Oh no you're not. You'll just get in my way." Rukia was doddled that this human could have thought that he'd be of any help at all. He may have been able to sense the hollow before her, but it didn't mean he was anywhere up to the level of a Shinigami.

"Bakudo 1: Sai" She sealed off Ichigo with a simple paralysis kido. She didn't need to overdo it to hold him off.

Ichigo let the kido do its bonding- or so Rukia thought. That kido wasn't nearly enough to hold him. In fact, it didn't even bind a finger. Still, he had to keep his cover, so he quickly crossed his arms around his back and feel to the floor. "What the hell? What can't I move?"

"That's a kido I've just placed on you. Don't try to break it. It's no use anyways." Rukia turned back and ran out the room, leaving Ichigo on the floor.

**_Nice acting ya got there, Kingy. "What the Hell? Why can't I move?"AHAHAHA I almost pissed myself in here for that act. Now get ya ass off'da floor so we can go_**

**Nice going, Ichigo. But Shiro is right we need to go now, before Rukia actually does enough damage to the Hollow. We must interfere.**

_'Oh I know that much. Let's go'_

Ichigo quickly discontorted himself. He didn't need to waste any time as he ran down the stairs of his house to find Rukia battling the creature outside.

"Get away from my family!" He picked up a chair and darted towards the bug-like creature that he knew all too well was a hollow. This one was easy bait. He could probably kill it with a flick of his hand- even in human form. It was probably the lowest level opponent he had fought against since the first fight he had as a Shinigami all those years ago.

'_But it wasn't all those years ago. They haven't happened yet'_ It was so weird to think about not having done all those things when he clearly remembered them. He just hopped that he would stay sane throughout this whole process.

"What the Hell are you doing?! You're going to get yourself killed!" Rukia couldn't believe her eyes when she saw the mob of orange rushing towards her and the hollow with a chair in hand. At first she thought that he was absolutely crazy for rushing into this, then she remembered that he shouldn't have been able to. _'I put a kido on him. No human should have been able to break that kido- at least without damaging their soul._' She was so in awe of her revelation that she completely missed the hollow's claw reaching out towards her.

"Look out! Rukia!" Ichigo pushed himself faster towards the hollow in order to make it look like he was trying to save her from the blow. As much as he didn't want her to get hurt, he knew it was necessary to get her to transfer her powers over to him again.

Rukia was pushed down and thrown several feet from the site of the attack. Attempting to stand back up and get back on track, she didn't notice the figure in the shadows watching the fight with interest from underneath a bucket hat.

"Rukia! Are you okay?" Ichigo dropped the chair and ran over to her. He supported her back and watched as she coughed up blood on the ground in front of her.

"What the hell were you thinking? You're just a human. You can't do anything to help." She was in pain. It hurt more than it should have. She knew that something was interfering with her powers from the start. Normally, this hollow would've been easy to take down.

"Well I couldn't just stand back and watch while a hollow attacked right outside of my house." Ichigo tried to convince her.

"Look, Ichigo, I'm too injured to fight. I'm too weak. I can help you by giving you some of my powers. After that, you have to take it from there." She couldn't believe what she was saying.

"What do I have to do?" Ichigo looked determined to help fight.

"Take my sword, and thrust it into yourself. It should give you just enough power to defeat the hollow." She didn't know how he'd react. Some random spirit you met a few minutes ago told you to thrust a sword into yourself to save yourself? That was crazy talk. Even she wouldn't have been fooled by that logic.

"Are you crazy? What will happen if the sword goes through me?" There it was. She knew he wouldn't believe her.

"It won't. But if this doesn't work, we don't have much to lose. Do you trust me?" It was hard enough to convince herself that this wasn't an absolutely ridiculous idea- much less convince him.

"I'm not sure if I-" He tried to protest, although he was going to do it anyways. He knew nothing would happen to him.

"We don't have time for your sarcasm. Do you trust me?" Rukia was fed up with him. They wouldn't have been in this mess if it wasn't for him in the first place.

Ichigo gave a determined smirk, "Give me that sword, Shinigami." And he grabbed the blade.

It was a long shot for Rukia to do such a thing, not only was it illegal, but it wasn't promised that it would work. She didn't know how it would turn out. Even if it did turn out the way she predicted it to, Ichigo still didn't know how to use the powers she was about to give him. Still, it seemed like the only choice she had- lest they become the next meal for the hollow.

Ichigo walked into Rukia's Zanpakutō knowing fully welt hat he had to take her powers from her. He really didn't want to leave her defenseless like that, but he knew he had to do it. He had to be careful as to how he played his cards this time. Aizen had to think that Rukia held the Hōgyoku, and the only way that she would fall into Kisuke's hands again would be to take away her powers.

Rukia looked up at Ichigo in shock for what seemed like the hundredth time that day. She would never hear the end of the crimes she had just committed, being a noble in this case especially didn't help her cause. Not with her brother being one of the must rule-upholding people that she knew. Ichigo looked incredible she had to admit that he looked like he had been born and bred to be a Shinigami. His Zanpakutō, even in its natural state was huge. It was one of the biggest she had ever seen, and he was human no less. Every Shinigami knew that the size of the Zanpakutō reflected the amount of reiatsu that a Shinigami had.

Wait. She knew it. Something had gone wrong. She felt powerless, weak. It was then that Rukia realized she had given all of her powers to Ichigo, not just the bit that she was planning on. As much as she wanted to see Ichigo battle the hollow in front of them, ad as much as she wanted to tell him how to defeat his new enemy, she couldn't stay conscious. So, she drifted off into a state of darkness.

It had all gone as plan. Ichigo's plan to take her powers worked. He hated doing it, but it was the only way. It wasn't like he had much time either. The hollow in front of him would be a piece of cake. Compared to the captains of the thirteen court guard squads, the arrancar, the visard, and Aizen- this was a fly on his wall. His Zanpakutō? Well that was just his giant fly swatter.

Ichigo knew that He had to make it look like he had more power than she would think. That was easy. He just compressed his spirit energy into a big enough blade. Still, it was inconvenient for him to go all out on the hollow. It was weak after all, but he hadn't fought in a while, and this would be a great way to blow off some steam. So, Ichigo sliced the head off that damned hollow in one single moved before reverting Zangetsu back to his more natural form of the slim Zanpakutō he had come to know once he had learned how to control his reiatsu.

"Nice work, Ichigo. It's interesting to see you fight. I must say, good job." Kisuke came out of the shadows.

"Yeah, but that wasn't even enough to cease my boredom."

"Now, what are we going to do with her?"

"I guess we'll have to take her back to the shop and heal her up. We need to suppress her powers from healing for a few days so that her brother can come back and fetch his family. You have a gigai that can do the trick? Don't worry. I'll give her back her powers eventually. We just need to set the trap up for Aizen first."

"I can whip something up in about a day. Until then, we'll just have to keep her unconscious. I assume you'll be the one keeping an eye out on her in the world of the living for the time being?"

"Yeah I'll take care of it. Contact me when you have everything you're responsible taken care of."

"Will do, Ichigo. Well then," He said picking up Rukia's body and throwing it haphazardly over his shoulder, "I'll see you soon enough."

Ichigo watched Urahara disappear with his old friend before turning around to head inside. From here on out, he knew that it would get just that much more difficult.

* * *

"Taicho, Taicho! Report. Urgent Report from the World of the living. Our signature on unseated officer number 16076: Rukia Kuchiki from the thirteenth Squad has just disappeared. I repeat; Our signature on unseated officer number 16076: Rukia Kuchiki from the thirteenth squad had just disappeared." The young Shinigami Rin Tsubokura stood idly by the door of the twelfth division captain's office waiting for any orders.

"No more signature huh? Did you check the sensors again?" The Captain of the twelfth squad smiled curiously.

"Double and triple checked them, sir!" The young Shinigami saluted.

"Hmm. Interesting. No more signature." He repeated himself in thought while tapping his longest nail on his lasts dissection project's face in front of him. His Cheshire grin widened.

"Let's wait on it for a few days before reporting it at the next captain's meeting. This could be a quite new interesting experiment having to deal with reishi signature in the world of the living." He chuckled to himself.

"While we're on the topic, sir- A new reishi signature unknown to our scanners has been picked up in the World of the living very close to where we lost Miss Kuchiki's"

"Hmn? Why didn't you tell me that sooner? This is much more interesting than some meaningless little Shinigami disappearing from our radar. Could a new creature perhaps appeared? I must experiment and research it further. Until then, keep this under the twelfth division's knowledge." He darted towards the pathetic Shinigami he had under his control. This new information was much more important. Didn't he know any better?! Still, the report was needed.

"Hai, Taicho! It will stay within the division walls." Rin shuddered at the eerie grin his Captain was giving him.

"Now get back to work!"

"Hai!" Rin quickly ran out of the room, the first order he was glad to receive from the captain.

"Interesting. Yes, very Interesting indeed. Nanao! Pack up this filth. I'm through with it. I have other plans I must assess now." He motioned to the disfigured creature on the dissection table in front of him while he turned to walk briskly to his lab. New reishi samples would be splendid. '_Simply splendid.'_

* * *

**A/N:**** Hey guys! So I realized in writing this chapter that I write very oddly. I write the dialogue first, and then I go back and add the paragraphs and reactions. Whatever. It works for me.**


	5. Author's note

I would like to apologize for disappearing for so long. There have been many issues in my family recently with several deaths and mental problems. I, myself have been on a heavy antidepressant for a while, and it seems to be working. My sister was recently put on an antidepressant too. I'm terribly sorry for abandoning the story like this. I also am graduating early after being pulled from school and I only need to finish up a math credit before I start college this fall. I would like to say thank you to everyone who is still reading this story and has left a follow, review, or favorite. I have thought about all of you often. At the moment, I cannot put up another chapter as I still have more issues to deal with in my life. When I started this story, I was at much better part in my life, and after a series of unfortunate events, I am worse for the wear.

I am truly for all aggravation that I have caused any of you. I am also aware that there are several mistakes in my previous chapters and would like to thank you for pointing it out to me. I just haven't gotten around to fixing it. I promise I will return to this story soon. I just don't know when that will be. Again, I'd like to thank you for being such amazing readers and making this impact on my life. As a result, I am going to pursue English in college. It is my hope that I will become a high school English teacher. I love each and every one of you. I promise that things will get better if you are going through a hard time. Thank you for supporting me every step of the way.


	6. Chapter 5

**AN:/ I'm Back! Thank you so much for all the love and support. I can't tell you how incredible each and every one of you have been. I started out this fic as an idea along with my want for improving my writing in the thrisd person, and I can't believe how far it's come already. I was originally going to make this chaper twice as long, but I'm saving the other half for two days from now so I can figure out where I am going exactly with the story. Don't freak out! You'll get another chappie in two days!**

* * *

When Kisuke first told Ichigo his idea about sending him back, he thought Kisuke was crazy. The war had messed with everyone's minds, and for the few that were still left, their minds were not in the best state. Ichigo remembered asking Kisuke if he had too much to drink. That had become their usual activity now. The walls of his shop had become Ichigo's makeshift home. Even though everything around them was ash, this had become their silent reverie. Occasionally they would spar for old time's sake, but mostly they were too tired to spar. Sparring held good memories, but now they had become sad ones. Most of the time they just sat around reflecting on the good times, talking about what they would change if they had the chance, but of course that was impossible, or so he thought.

Ichigo guessed he should have known what Kisuke was doing when he wanted to be alone. He should have asked when he heard the occasional explosion here or there from Kisuke's quarters. How could he have known that he was making a way to send Ichigo back in time? Ichigo had just gotten so used to him being so distant after Yoruichi's death that he stopped questioning his motives. There were times when Ichigo wanted to be alone too. Most of those times happened after his attempts to sleep failed due to the nightmares plaguing his mind. Normally, Ichigo's dreams were in color. They were so vivid that he had a hard time believing they were not the reality he so wished that they were. But his nightmares were different. They were not in color. They were in grayscale, and the only color anywhere in sight was red. Red stained the ground. Red stained his hands. When he ran over to water to wash them, the water would turn red. Everything would be soaked in that heinous color. When he finally opened his eyes, any sight of red would cause him to pull at his hair. It got so bad that he had to convince Kisuke to get rid of every red piece of furniture they owned, and if it was too sentimental, then to put it in a place where Ichigo would never see it again. Kisuke didn't bother asking about it. Ichigo's sudden hatred of the color red was just something that he would have to accept. Just like how Kisuke would have to accept all the other new mannerisms that Ichigo had developed since the war.

These mannerisms were not anything that a person meeting Ichigo for the first time would just pick up. They were discreet, but they were there nonetheless. Kisuke started to notice them during the war. It started with the occasional hand rubbing his arm. He would do it every so often, to make sure that it was still there. To anyone else, it would see as though he was just scratching himself, but Kisuke knew better than that. Kisuke knew that Ichigo just wanted the conformation that his arm was still where it had been all along. This started when Chad lost one of his own. Orehime couldn't fix it since his arm was technically composed of reishi, which even Orehime couldn't fix. Unohana had attempted, but all of her attempts were in vain. The best they could do was stop the bleeding and let his body naturally form the skin back over the newly attained stump. Kisuke also noticed Ichigo's newfound jumpiness when it came to silence. Most people would expect him to be jumpy when it came to loud noises, as this was a typical symptom of PTSD. Ichigo, however, was different. It wasn't the noise that scared him. It was the silence. Noise meant that people were breathing. Noise meant that people were alive. Noise meant that people were talking, partying, going crazy like they used to. Noise meant normalcy. Nothing in Ichigo's life had ever been quiet. Silence meant death. Silence meant mourning. Silence meant failure. That is what truly scared Ichigo. So the possibility of being able to go back and change his mistakes meant everything to him. It was a dream- an unreachable one- where life could be normal again. It was a chance to correct all the mistakes he had made. It was a chance to save everyone who had died. It was a chance to prevent it all from ever being started.

"So whaddya say, Ichigo?" Kisuke looked at him with a look in his eyes that Ichigo hadn't seen for years. "Are you ready to go back and fix this messed up future?"

"Have you been drinking too much again?" Ichigo knew that the man was crazy genius, but this was just crazy, "Geeze, you're becoming a lightweight in your old age." He joked.

"I'm serious." When Ichigo looked at Kisuke again, he set his drink down. Ichigo hadn't seen that look in his eyes in a long time. It was a look of hope. It was the look that he used to instruct Ichigo with when he had first gained his Shinigami powers. It was the look that said, "I'm not joking around." And Ichigo was intrigued.

"Alright, say I believe you, what good would it do? It would probably end up being the same. I don't want that to happen." Ichigo and Kisuke had talked about this for a long time. They would often talk about what it would be like to go back, but never had it once been a possibility, and Ichigo wasn't so sure that the future wouldn't end up the same again. He wouldn't go through that again. He couldn't.

Urahara shrugged and placed an elbow on the table in order to prop up his head with his hand, "Then stop it from happening. The answer is simple."

Ichigo scoffed. His friend was crazy, he'd give him that, but this wasn't crazy- it was ridiculous. "It's not going to be as easy as you think it seems, Kisuke."

"No, it's not." He took another sip of his sake, "That's why I think we should send you back a couple hundred years." He paused when he noticed Ichigo's apprehensive, yet intrigued look, "That way you can prevent Aizen from getting his plan in action, or at least the bunt of the plan, that its"

"That's crazy." It took Ichigo a while to take in all of what he said. It sounded promising, but then realized that Kisuke had only said "you." He hadn't said anything about himself.

"What about you? You're coming with me if I'm going, right?"

Kisuke shook his head, "Sorry, Ichigo. My invention only has enough power to send back one person at a time."

"Then how about you go after me? You can't just leave me alone." Ichigo's voice rose and then fell again with the second sentence. The thought of losing the last person in his life was too much. He had already lost much. He didn't want to lose anyone else. He didn't know that he could take it.

"I'm afraid I can't. I don't think that it'll have enough energy to send me back too, and even if it could, there's a possibility we could end up in separate times. It would create a lot of trouble." Kisuke knew how Ichigo was feeling. He wanted more than anything to go with him, but he knew that wasn't possible. Too much could go wrong.

"You can't just leave me Kisuke! You're all I have left." His eyes were wide and he reached for his arm to make sure it was still there. When he was sure it was, the flashbacks started to calm. Everything had been red for a few seconds.

"Even if I could go back, I'm much older than you. If I run into myself it could cause some trouble. People knew me hundreds of years ago. They didn't know you."

"And what if something messes up and I end up only a few years back and I meet myself? What do I do then?" Ichigo couldn't believe what he was hearing. There was so much that could go wrong. He didn't even know how they were even going to do this.

"I suppose that you would have to merge with your younger self. I'm not exactly sure what would happen, but I'm sure you'll at least retain your memories when you do that. Your powers on the other hand, well…that's up for debate" Kisuke was hopeful that Ichigo would keep his powers if it so happened that he did end up in the wrong timeline. He just hoped that if something did go wrong that Ichigo wouldn't be three or seven. Kisuke was already feeling guilty about pushing to send Ichigo back, and the thought of a seven year old with memories of war and the burden of unbelievable powers made him feel sick to his stomach.

It was silent for a while as Kisuke let Ichigo soak what they had just discussed. The steady ticking of the clock was the only sound keeping Ichigo somewhat level-headed. He had no clue what to do. If there was any possibility at all that he could fix this future, he knew he should take it. But so much could go wrong, and he was scared. It took him a moment to admit that to himself. Ichigo Kurosaki was scared. For so long he had to keep up the brave face for everyone else. For so long he had been the shoulder to cry on and the voice of optimism for others. He was their one light to the dreaded war. He had to be strong. There wasn't a moment that he could let himself feel fear. If he did that, then he was good as dead and Aizen might have well been the winner. After several minutes of silent deliberation, Kisuke was the one to speak up.

"Why don't you take a night to think about it? Get back to me when you have an answer." With that said, Kisuke downed the rest of his drink and left the room. Ichigo sat there for a few more minutes before finishing his drink and leaving to his own room too. Right now he needed to talk to some people who had been very quiet during this entire matter. He needed insight on what to do. Although Kisuke had told him to think about it and not to rush into things, Ichigo had a feeling that they didn't have much time. If he didn't make up his mind soon, he might lose this chance forever. Sitting down on the edge of his bed, Ichigo sighed, placing two hands on his forehead as he felt himself enter into his inner world.

'_What do you think, guys?' _Ichigo glanced around his inner world. It had changed so much since he first was brought into it. The skyscrapers were no longer there. Replacing where they once stood were ruins of rock and debris. The sky had also changed drastically too. Instead of the clear, blue skies they were before, they had become dark and heavy with clouds. There wasn't a streak of light to be seen. The flagpole which Zangetsu favored so much had rusted and fallen to the ground. Even the ash they stood upon was constantly damp form the numerous rainstorms that often appeared.

**I feel that while it is risky, it is a chance that must be taken. **Ichigo turned his attention back to Zangetsu, seeing the wisdom in his eyes. He only looked away when Shiro decided to share his input.

_**Well, King. I've gotta be honest with ya. I think it's dumber than horse shit to attempt something like that, but that's just my opinion.**_

'_That's a lot of help. I'm stressed out already as is. I don't know what to do_' Ichigo was distressed. He felt split about the entire situation. On one hand, Ichigo had the chance of a lifetime. He had the opportunity to go back and fix everything. He could see his family again, his friends again, and beat Aizen before he knew what was ever coming. On the other hand was fear. Fear that he would screw it up again. Fear that he wouldn't be able to save them again. Fear that something would go wrong and he would end up in the wrong time. He did not know what to do.

**Ichigo, do not waiver in your ideals. If you believe that this step must be made, then take it. It might seem like a jump over a gorge right now, but that will change in due time.** Zangetsu's voice brought him back to his senses. Ichigo knew what he wanted to do. He knew exactly what he wanted. He was just being held back.

_**Yeah, kingy. You'll work something out- you always do.**_

'_I know. It's just that-'_

_**You're scared. **_Shiro spoke the words that he himself had been too afraid to speak.

Ichigo sighed, _'Yeah, I'm scared'_

**Hesitate and you die. ** Ichigo was confused.

'_What are you getting at Old man Zangetsu_?' His eyes narrowed.

**There isn't much time, Ichigo. If you don't decide soon, you will lose the chance to change the past.**

_**Make up your mind, King. What'll ya do? Sit 'round here in this ashy dump with that 'ol man in the stupid bucket hat? Or are ya gonna try and change something? It's your choice…but lemme tell ya a little secret. It ya choose ta stay here, I'll never forgive ya, and I'll take over as King.**_

Ichigo looked over at his spirits once more. He saw Zangetsu's unwavering face and found comfort in it. **It's okay to be afraid, Ichigo. It just means that what you're scared of matters. **

With those words Ichigo made his decision. He had the opportunity, so he would take it. Shiro was right, He'd figure it all out along the way- he always did. When Ichigo left his inner world, he tried to go to sleep. No matter how many times he tried, he just could not stop thinking about tomorrow. Every scenario played through in his head. His emotions went through a cycle of uncertainty, fear, confidence, questioning, and back to uncertainty. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

The next morning, Ichigo walked into the kitchen to find Kisuke had already made tea, "Good morning, Ichigo. I'd take it that you slept well, but you look like shit."

Ichigo laughed and scratched the back of his head, "Yeah, I thought about your proposition some more last night" He didn't just think about it. Ichigo had been up all night running it over and over again through his head. He didn't even realize when he fell asleep. All he remembered was waking up the next morning feeling like shit.

"Oh?" Kisuke raised an eyebrow, "And do you have an answer?" He sipped his tea waiting for Ichigo's reply trying to hide the anxiety behind his ever stoic mask.

"I'll go back." Ichigo's words cut Kisuke like a knife. It was as if a wave of relief washed over him.

"I see." Kisuke tried to keep his expression as nonchalant as possible.

"But I'll only go back if you come with me." Although Kisuke had come to recognize Ichigo's bizarre requests and ideals throughout the years, he had never been able to figure out what exactly Ichigo had going on in his head.

"We've already discussed this-" He was cut off by Ichigo's persistent nature.

"I know. That's why I'm asking you to still be there for me." Ichigo sure was resilient.

"Hn?"

"I want you to promise that you'll still be there for me when I need you. You're practically all I have left, and if I go back I'm still going to trust you with my life. I want you to promise me that you'll still be there for me." He knew that there were some flaws in his logic, but Ichigo wasn't going to lose another person again. He hand hovered over to his arm again. Still there.

Kisuke nodded. "I can promise you that here, but my past self is a different story. If you tell him what happened, I know you can trust him."

"Alright then. Thank you. When do I leave?" He cut straight to the point. Ichigo didn't really want Kisuke to give him much time to back down. He had made up his mind to go, sure, but that didn't mean he didn't have any doubts.

"You'll leave in a few hours. I want to run some more tests before I send you. We only have one shot at this and it needs to work. I need you to change this future, Ichigo." Kisuke knew he was being a little selfish. He was really hoping Ichigo would change things so that his future wouldn't be so mundane and lifeless anymore.

"I will. I promise that the next time we meet, it won't be because of this shitty future."

Kisuke smirked, "I'm holding ya to that promise, Kurosaki."

" And I'm holding you to yours, so we're even, Urahara." With that said, Kisuke left the room to run the last few tests.

The next few hours passed by quicker than Ichigo had expected, and he soon found himself standing infront of another one of Kisuke's crazy inventions.

"Are you sure this is safe?" Ichigo looked at the device with apprehensive eyes. He wasn't at all thrilled to be stepping into that machine. It was bulky and had wires sticking out everywhere. Ichigo didn't really know what he was looking at. There was so much going on. He could tell that there was a reishi converter on one end and a box with multiple letters and dates.

"Completely." Urahara said waving his hand

Ichigo narrowed his eyes are him,"Uh huh…" But before Ichigo could ask any more questions, Kisuke spoke up.

"I have it set to send you back one hundred years, so it should give you plenty of time to take down Aizen. Remember, if you need anything, find me. Tell myself what happened and what I did, and I'm sure that you'll be fine."

"Alright. Thanks for everything, Kisuke." Ichigo gave Kisuke a hug. They had become like family after all.

"I should be saying that to you, Ichigo." Kisuke tipped his hat in return.

Ichigo looked back up at the machine, "Well, I guess it's time for me to go. Wish me luck."

Kisuke scoffed, "You've never needed luck, kid. You've always had it."

"Haha, I guess you're right. See you on the other side" Ichigo's waving hand was the last thing Urahara saw before he pulled the lever. A flashing light broke through the air, and an enormous sound was emitted. The floor started to shake, and Kisuke knew that the training ground were going to collapse on him. He would finally be reunited with his friends.

"Make me proud, kid."

What Kisuke missed though was the rock causing the lever to switch. Instead of One hundred years, a zero was knocked off. Ichigo was now being sent ten years into the past. He would figure something out though, he always did.

* * *

**AN:/ There we go! Next chapter is in two days. Don't forget to leave a review, fav, or follow. I really appreciate it! :3 This chappie gave me feels, guys. I just love the relationship Ichigo and Kisuke have. **


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